HOUSTON (Reuters) - The top U.S. oil spill official on Sunday directed BP Plc to submit a plan for reopening its capped Macondo well to flow into the ocean after engineers detected seepage on the ocean floor near the well.
"I direct you to provide me with a written procedure for opening the choke valve as quickly as possible ... should hydrocarbon seepage near the well head be confirmed," retired Coast Guard Admiral Thad Allen wrote in a letter to BP <:BP.LO:>chief managing director Bob Dudley.
